Ethical Issues Facing Businesses, Essay Example

Discuss and analyze how differences in various countries’ cultures can create ethical issues in business?

Differences in various countries’ cultures can create ethical issues in business because different countries have different definitions of what practices are defined as ethical or unethical. When groups from two different countries do business, it is essential for them to define what practices will be a part of their business plan. In a majority of cases, both parties will want to form a plan that will enable them to earn the greatest net profit. To do so, one party may be willing to partake in activities that the other considers to be unethical.

For example, in the United States, there is a stringent federal minimum wage and corporations cannot hire workers unless they are willing to meet this salary. Furthermore, many businesses believe that even in their international locations, employees should be provided with the same benefits. On the other hand, Beijing, which is a frequent business partner of the United States, has a much lower hourly minimum wage. Therefore, they may expect third-party nations to be paid closer to this salary. This cultural difference would lead to a significant gap in pay for workers, which some businessmen in the United States consider unethical. Meanwhile, businessmen in Beijing may believe that providing workers with the United States federal minimum wage would be too high of a salary and detractor of profit. Thus, it is difficult to determine fair wage and benefits for international businesses that have different compensation methods in their home country.

While a low compensation would be ethical according to businessmen in Beijing because it’s close to their conventional compensation, it would be unethical for businessmen in the United States to agree to this. Ethical behavior in this scenario is a reflection of fair treatment of workers according to the social standards of the society that is paying the compensation. Due to cultural differences, it is often difficult for business professionals to reach a similar definition of ethical behavior in their practice.